More Household Chores

Well, once again, I've been tasked with fixing another appliance in the house. This time, the dryer. And before anyone asks, yes, Angel trusts me working with high power electricity. The dryer was functional in all ways except the slightly important part, heat. So, something doesn't work, how do you fix it? Tear it open.

So, the dryer first stopped working on Thursday of last week. Once I got off of work, I started tearing into the dryer to figure out what was wrong with it. Have I ever tried to troubleshoot a dryer before? No. Do I have a clue of what I'm looking for? No.

The process starts with opening the back of the dryer. For reference, the big part, not the little one. Once I get the back off of the dryer, I discover that there isn't much to it. The only part of the machine I couldn't get to was the motor. However, since the exhaust fan and drum spin, I'm not worried about getting to it. So, what are the pieces of the machine I'm looking at? Well, to be perfectly honest, I don't know yet.

Since there wasn't too much to look at, time to open the small part on top of the dryer. The top of the dryer wasn't too much different from the bottom. There are only a set of wires running from point A to point B. Since the dryer is functioning in every aspect but that of heat, the knob/timer should be working fine. Since the machine starts and stops, the start button obviously works. What is left to investigate on a machine of such relatively simple construction.

Well, thankfully, Whirlpool so conveniently provided a wiring diagram inside the top section. Based on the diagram, I was then able to identify what the devices in the bottom portion of the dryer were. I found a fuse, a couple thermostats, and a thermo-fuse (for lack of a better name). I was able to deduce that the fuse was in working order with a multi-meter. The thermostats and thermo-fuse are a completely different story. I thought one of the thermostats were the problem. However, while testing the fuse the battery died within the meter. At this point I've decided that since I can't prove without reasonable doubt which part is broken. Also, there is still one more part that could be the culprit. The coil.

The heating coil, according to the diagram, works off of 220/240 current. There is only one 220/240 plug in the house. Something within the dryer is broken and I can't manually trigger the coil. What else is there to do to test the coil? Yup, you've guessed it. Hot wire the coil to the plug.

WARNING: DO NOT TRY THIS YOURSELF! YOU CAN BE SERIOUSLY INJURED TRYING TO REPRODUCE THE FOLLOWING STEPS!

The plug has 3 wires in it, red with white generates a 110/120 volt circuit and red and black creates a 220/240 volt circuit. Well, according to the diagram anyway. Since I've been inside the guts of this machine, it is already unplugged. So, from my dad's garage, I had some 12 gauge solid wire lying around. There are already 2 pieces, so I'm set there. Each wire has one end stripped. So, there are only two strips that I need to do. I don't know what heat rating this wire has, but for the duration I'm going to use it, it is safe enough. So, I unscrew the retainer screw for the red and black posts for the plug. I place the wires into the gap that is produced and refasten the screws.

Now that these wires are ready to be energized, I determine where and how I'm going to place the wires against the coil once the plug is connected. So, the two safety mechanisms I took to protect myself was first determining that connecting the wires in opposing directions (both inward to the center of the 2 posts which would prevent the wires from touching because the posts would be in the way) and having Angel in charge of the plug. So, now that the safety procedures are in place (no matter how unsafe it might have been) it is time to give this coil a go.

Angel's instructions were that should I get shocked, unplug the source. Then, she connected the plug to the outlet. So far, so good; no sparks and I'm not getting zapped. So, I present the wires to the coil. First the one in my left hand. Nothing happens. Then I begin to move the wire in my right hand to the coil. I get about 1/4 or 1/8 of an inch from the terminal and ZAP! Sparks fly. I guess I moved too slowly getting the wire to its destination. Well, at this point I've proved that the circuit works. But, I have not proved if the coil will still heat. Also, the look on Angel's face was classic. The look said OMG!!! But, she didn't say a word or make a move.

So, I regain my composure and try this again, this time prepared for the spark. Once I get the wire connected, the coil didn't wait any time getting hot. I mean did not wait. I was absolutely amazed at how quickly it went from black to orange and being able to feel the heat on my hands. Ok, the coil works. I remove the wire from the coil. Angel removes the plug and I remove the jumper wires. This leaves me to believe that there are only 2 items that could possibly causing our no heat issue. A thermostat or a thermo-fuse.

Angel and I make the futile trip to Lowes to see if we can purchase the replacement parts. Well, as expected, the parts for the many items that they sell are not warehoused at the stores. The sales representative was kind enough to provide me with a number to call to get the parts ordered. Well, since we're there and we didn't get what we needed, I bought a new battery for my meter.

Well, since it was so late, I didn't make the call to the Lowes Parts Replacement line that night. Friday was a day from hell at work (10 AM - 3AM working) and therefore, I didn't make the call then. The business card did not indicate if they were open on weekends and I failed to think about it on Saturday (well, it didn't help that I spent most of the day sleeping). Therefore, I gave them a call on Sunday just in case they were in operation. My luck is with me then, they were there and were able to help.

Before I gave them the call, I pulled out my meter again and did a continuity test on all of the thermostats and the thermo-fuse. Well, the only one to give a reading that worried me was the thermo-fuse. It was open. Therefore, I thought it was the culprit for certain.

I gave them the make and model of the machine, a brief description of the part that I believe is the problem and they placed the order for delivery on Tuesday (today). To my amazement, the parts to fix my problem came to a combined total of $35. I had heard horror stories about people being told that fixing their dryer would be so expensive, it would be less expensive to buy a new one.

Well, today, my parts arrived. I decided to hit the new pieces with the meter and to my surprise, the new parts were generating the same results as the ones I took out. At this point I'm skeptical. Did I order the right parts? Is the dryer going to work when I put it back together? I don't have a clue and there is only one way to determine the answer. Time to put everything back together.

Once again during this process, I am shocked. I don't know what changed at this point, but once everything was reassembled the dryer is working. Almost as equally amazing, once again, there were no pieces or parts that were not replaced left over. This is amazing. In a two week period I've fixed 3 appliances of varying degrees of difficulty successfully and without left over parts. Is this going to become a trend? Should I get used to this? I guess only time will tell.

Anyway, one of the more interesting aspects of this instance has to do with the following question. When these things are so simple to fix by yourself, is it worth calling in a technician that is going to inflate the cost because of the addition of labor costs. I think I'll keep working on things myself until I'm out of options, either physically or due to knowledge.